This year brought 2 huge wins for me - Lisa and Brittany.  Lisa took over my rental property management in January.  For the first time in 4 years, our rents are current and our properties are up to date on licensing and maintenance.  

Last week was a blur of prep for the year ahead - for my girls (backpacks, and schedules, and buses, oh my!) - and for me. I took 2 days offline to step outside my normal space and think broadly about the next 6-12 months. 

Inside Culture Index, we joke about crushes - not romantic ones, but on "traits" we wish we had.  Right now mine is intense mental focus.  It's often mistaken for slow, but really it’s certainty.

Earlier this week, our family gathered 'round the TV to watch a SpaceX rocket launch - an extra special one, since Benchmark Space Systems (my husband’s company) had two propulsion systems on board.

One of the hardest truths for growth-stage CEOs to accept is that their biggest job isn’t jumping in to fix problems—it’s structuring the org so problems fix themselves.  

This summer, my friend Cati shared how hiring a personal trainer was the best investment she’s made. She’s gotten super strong and knows strength is imminently important to future Cati's health. It made me think about how we invest in tools, but we need support to actually get results.

Ever feel like you're missing out on results because you haven’t found the “right” person or system? I do this with fitness all the time. I think I'm not massively jacked because I haven't found the right gym situation that works for me. But it's not really the gym. It's the application of my gym membership(s).

I came across something online recently called "October Theory" - the idea that Oct. 1st feels like a mini New Year's.  There’s this sense that the year’s wrapping up, but with three months left there’s still time to make a final strong push toward your goals. 

Most CEOs know exactly what their challenges are, but it seems like there are never enough resources to solve them.  Here's a secret though - big wins can begin in the next 15 minutes.

Just like with my sellers, the only way to succeed is to get them more excited about the future opportunity than they are about the present state.  Then they'll put in the work needed (or turn it over to someone else to put in the work.)

Great leaders inspire others to dream, empower them to seek out solutions they are uniquely suited for, and support those solutions above their own.

"Maybe the solution is not another system.  Maybe the solution is less."

We have raised over $400k and used that to impact more than 1,000 people, including hurricane relief efforts in Florida, refugee transportation/food/shelter in Ukraine, house building in Mexico, and food and education issues in Chicago.